Alarm for fire-escapes.



PATENTED APR. 9, 1907.

' S. ASHFORD. ALARM FOR FIRE ESGAPES.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 9, 1906.

MZZZ

'ms NORRIS FE7ERS co., wAsumc'roN, 1:. c,

I ladders.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFEGE.

'ALARM FOR FIRE-ESCAPES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented April 9, 1907.

Application filed May 9,1906. Serial No. 316,021.

10 when the weight of a person or other weight is placed on any one ofthe several balconies of a fire-escape or if the amount of Weightsupported by any balcony is reduced as, for example, when the lowerladder is made i 5 to rest upon the ground.

The object of my invention is to devise an improvement in fire-escapeswhich can be readily and cheaply attached or applied to the existingforms of construction without 20 having to materially alter in anyparticular the exterior construction of the usual form of lire-escape orto make other than slight additions or changes in the construction ofthe parts which pass through the walls for 2 5 supporting thefire-escape on the building.

ther evident advantages and objects of the construction will appear fromthe hereinafter-detailed description of the device and manner ofoperating the same.

My invention consists of structural features and relative combinationsof elements, which will be hereinafter more fully and clearly described,and particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

Referring to the one sheet of drawings, in which similar referencecharacters indicate the same parts in the several figures, Figure 1 is aside elevation of two of the balconies of a fire-escape with theconnecting and lower Fig. 2 is an enlarged view of one of thelower-balcony supports, showing the wall in section and the means ofattaching the electric alarm device. Fig. 3 is an enlarged view of theelectric contactpoints and 4 5 means for adjusting the same.

Referring to Fig. 1, 1 is an upper and 2 a lower balcony of afire-escape, which may be secured and supported on the outside of a wallin a manner to be presently described.

3 is an inclined ladder connecting theupper balcony with the lower oneand so related thereto that the upper-balcony floor can move withoutaffecting the ladder 3. 4 indicates the lower ladder, having one of itsends pivoted at 5 to the lower balcony, so as to permit the other end tobe elevated and supported by means of an easily-operated catch or hook 6or to be detached from said hook and rest on the ground, as indicated indotted lines.

Referring to Fig. 2, 7 is a section of the wall of a building to theoutside of which the fire-escape is secured, and at two or more pointsin said wall corresponding to the line of a floorbalcony 8 an opening 9is formed, which is adapted to loosely receive an anchor orextension-rod 10, which is secured to the floor of the balcony. Thebalcony-floor or base 8 is so constructed and disposed with respect tothe rigidly-secured balustrade that it has an independent movement andis permitted by means of the loose connectings 12 to have a slightmovement to or from the wall, according to whether weight is taken fromor added to the balcony, to be hereinafter more clearly explained.

13 is an annular casing or sleeve which is placed at the inner end ofthe wall opening or hole 8 and is provided with an annular flange 14,which bears against the inner side of the wall 7. Seated within thecasing 13 and sur rounding the inner end of the rod 10 is a coil spring15 one end of which abuts against the contracted inner end of the casing13, while its other end is subject to the pressure of an adjustable nut16, engaging the threaded inner end of the rod 10, and therebycorrespondingly compressing the coil-spring 15.

17 is a threaded rod, preferably made integral with and extending fromthe upper side of the flange 14 a short distance above the rod 10.Supported on the rod 17 are two spring-metal pieces 18 18, each of whichhas two separated or forked ends having a sec tion made of insulatingmaterial.

19 19 are adjustable nuts engaging the threads of the rod 17 and are forthe purpose of clamping and securing the adjacent separated ends of thepieces 18 18 a certain distance from the nut 16 after an adjustment hasbeen made to compress the spring su'lli ciently to counterbalance thenormal weight acting on the floor-balcony 8.

20 20 are electrical conductors whose terminals 21 or 21 pass throughthe insulatingsections at the se arated or forked ends of thespring-metal pleces 18 18, while 22 is the annunciator which rings thealarm and indicates what particular balcony has its normal or adjustedposition disturbed by having the terminals 21 21come together bymovement of the nut 16, and thereby close the circuit.

23 is a battery for supplying the electrical current, and 24 24 are theconductors leading to the upper balconies and constructed similar tothose already described. 7

The operation of the device is as follows: Assuming that the nut 16 hasbeen screwed up against the coil-spring 15 to such an extent that thecombined weight of balconyfloor 8 and the ladders 3 and 4 is held inequilibrium, the pieces 18 18' are adjusted and clamped by nuts 19 19 onthe rod 17, so that the inner side of the forked ends 18 1F impinge onor stand closely adjacent to the sides of the nut 16. After the aboveadjustments and relation of the several parts are insured it will bereadily seen that should any person attempt to reach the balcony 2 byunhooking the ladder 4- and have it assume the position indicated by thedotted lines the weight supported by the balconyfloor 8 would bereduced, causing the coilspring 15 to move the rod 10 and nut 16 to theleft, when the two terminals 21 21 on the forked piece 18 would come incontact and complete the circuit, and thereby ring the alarm ofannunciator 22. Should. any person attempt to pass out on any one of thebalconies, tire additional weight supported by the balcony-floor at sucha time would further compress s n'ing 1-3 and the nut 16 would move tothe ri ht and cause the terminals 21 21. of the forked piece 18 tocomplete the circuit and, as above explained, also give an alarm, whenit could be imn' edi ately determined what balcony the person steppedout on.

From tle above-explained mode of operation it will be seen tiiit-t lhave devised an attachment which will readily give an alarm and indicateat what particular point of several fire-escapes about a flat building aperson is attempting to pa s from one llat to another by the outside ofbuilding.

From the foregoing disclosure it will be seen that I have described analarm for fireescapes which will effect all the functions and objects asrecited in the statement of invention, and while I have described oneand my preferred form it can be easily seen and understood by thoseskilled in the art that many changes will be readily suggested withoutdeparting from the spirit of my invention-as, for example, instead ofemploying electric current as the means of conveying the movement of thebalcony-floor to the ala'm or indicator any other expedient may beemployed, whether a mechanical contrivance, compressed air, or othermedium.

l laving now fully described my invention, what I claim as new, anddesire to secure by Letters Patent, is as follows:

1. An alarm for fire-escapes comprising a yielding balcony floor orplatform supported 1 in equilibrium and projecting on. the outside of awall, an alarm, and means connected with said floor or platform foractuating the alarm, when weight is added to or taken off the floor orplatform.

2. An alarm for lire-escapes comprising a yielding balcony floor orplatform supported in equilibrium and projecting on the outside of awall, an alarm, and means connected with said floor or platform foractuating the alarm whether said floor mo res away from or near to thewall of the building when weight is added to or taken oil the lloor orplatform. I

3. An alarm for lire-escapes comprising a balcony floor or platform,means for yieldingly supporting said. floor or platform in equilibriumon the outside of a wall whcrebv the floor or platform is movable to orfrom the wall, an alarm, and means for actuating the alarm by anymovement of the floor or platform when weight is added to or taken fromthe platform.

4. An alarm for lire-escapes comprising a balcony floor or platform onthe outside of a wall, a rod passing loosely through the wall andconnected at its outer end to the floor or platform, a coil-springengaging the other or innercnd of the rod and yieldingly supporting thefloor or platform, an alarm and means operated by the movement of therod for actuating the alarm to indicate whether weight is added to ortaken off the floor or platform.

5. An alarm for fire-escapes comprising a balcony floor or platform onthe outside of a wall, a rod passing loosely through the wall andconnected at its outer end to the floor or platform, a coil-springengaging the other or inner end of the rod and yieldingly supporting thefloor or platform, an electric alarm, and means operated by the movement of the rod for closing the circuit of the electric alarm toindicate whether weight is added to or taken off the floor or platform.

6. An alarm for lire-escznws comprising a balcony floor or platform onthe outside of a wall, a rod passing loosely through the wall andconnected at its outer end to the floor or platform, a coil-springengaging the other or inner end of the rod and yieldingly supporting thefloor or platform, an electric alarm having twointlependently-mljustable terminals or circuits and means operated bythe movement of the rod for closing either one of the circuits toindicate whether weight is added to or taken off the floor or platform.in testimony whereof I ailix my signature 1n presence of two witnesses.

SN OWDEN ASHFORD. Witnesses:

W. C. SGHOENBORN, CnARLiis LOWELL llowann.

IIO

